Finally, someone from the Ruling Party decide to throw some weight
behind its neglected candidate at Potong Pasir.
Unfortunately, Mah Bow Tan was chosen, and had not so cleverly
passed his dim witted remarks to an already unnecessary petty
politics over the failed project of providing "a footpath with
solar powered lighting" started by the failed candidate from the
Ruling Party.
The decision - by the failed candidate from the Ruling Party - not
to repair the failed solar lighted footpath was a petty political
response to the smart moves from the residents of Potong
Pasir.
With the tenure of land used by the footpath being awarded to the
Ruling Party, and expiring in October 2006, and with its unknown
prospect in winning the Potong Pasir Constituency, the Ruling Party
candidate has declined to continue the maintenance and repair of
the solar-powered street lights, which has become a political issue
in Potong Pasir.
In the last development to the ongoing dispute, Chiam had
outmanouvered his archrival from the Ruling Party by upping the ante with his application
to the URA to build a sheltered and lighted footpath - as a
replacement to the existing unsheltered footpath that featured the
failed solar powered lighting built and funded by the 2-time losing
candidate from the Ruling Party.
Unbelieveably, Mah Bow Tan has the audacity to tell Chiam to stop
playing petty politics and serve the
constituents.
Straits Times, 9 August 2006
Mah: Chiam should focus on
residents
by Tan Hui Yee
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan yesterday accused Mr
Chiam See Tong of raising "petty, non-relevant issue " instead of
getting down to work to serve his Potong Pasir residents.
he made the comments in response to an ongoing public dispute
between Mr Chiam and his defeated People's Action Party opponent,
Mr Sitoh Yih Pin, over a set of damaged solar lights in the
opposition wards.
The lights were installed on government land leased to Mr Sitoh,
who is the PAP's grassroot adviser in the ward. The lights were
vandalised recently but Mr Sitoh said he had to return the land to
the Government, while the opposition MP said the are a where the
lights are does not come under the jurisidction of his town
council.
Said Mr Mah yesterday: "At this point in time, it is important for
the elcted respresentatives, whether it is PAP or the opposition,
to get on with the job of serviing their residents.
"The PAP MPs have already started work to draw up plans to fulfil
the promises they made during the election. I think the opposition
MPs should do likewise and stop playing games. "
Mr Mah was speaking after attending a National Day observance
ceremony in the Botanic Gardens.
Mr Sitoh declined to repair the lights as he said the land's lease
will run out on Oct 31.
Mr Chiam told Shin Min Daily News earlier this week he wanted to
find out the terms of the lease agreement for the land, which he
believed may include certain conditions like maintaining the
lights.
However, the HDB has declined to reveal the terms of the lease,
saying it is private information between the board and Potong Pasir
Citizens' Consultative Committee, which Mr Sitoh advises.
Yesterday, Mr Mah accused Mr Chiam of "trying to divert attention
from the real issue " .
"The main issue is this is a problem in the constituency.... the
Member of Parliament should try to solve the problem as quickly and
as efficiently as possible, " he said.
Mr Chiam is now seeking to lease the land to build a covered
walkway for residents.
Meanwhile, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, Mr Lim Boon
Heng, told reporters at a separate event yesterday: "In Potong
Pasir, you cannot have your cake and eat it. You've decided on
Chiam See Tong, so he should solve your problems. You have rejected
Sitoh, so don't expect him therefore to continue serving you.
"For all he has done, you have rejected him and you wanted Chiam
See Tong. You've got a problem, then you go to Chiam See
Tong."
This must be unique in Singapore's
political history, where a Ruling Party starts a problem in an
opposition ward - and will not resolve the problem that it has
created, and will use that problem to show up the supposed
incompetency of the oppositon MP in resolving issues.
Now that Chiam See Tong has applied to the URA to lease the same
piece of land to build a covered and lighted footpath - an
improvement to the uncovered footpath built by the Ruling Party -
will the Minister of National Development Mr Mah Bow Tan approve
such an application from Mr Chiam; or will Mr Mah expect Mr Chiam
to spend on the repairs of a failed PAP footpath project - (which
even its own candidate will not spend money on) - before approving
the application to build the proposed New Covered and Lighted
Footpath ?
Here is a lesson for the newcomers to Singapore Politics on how the
"Truth is distorted"; and
putting the word into action to the statement - "A Lie spoken often enough by Prominent
Persons, can become the Truth".
